I KNOW THIS DOES NOT BELONG ON THIS BLOG BUT IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO ALL AMERICANS: IT IS AS FOLLOWS:

The Merida Initiative is a new foreign assistance program designed to combat drug trafficking, transnational crime, and terrorism in Mexico and Central America . President Bush’s proposed fiscal year 2009 (FY09) Budget includes $550 million as a part of a multi-year, $1.4 billion program.

Specifically, this program would provide training, technologies, and equipment to help Mexican authorities fight the war on drugs and organized crime. Some of the equipment includes helicopters, surveillance aircraft, ion scanners, secure communications systems, and other technologies. It is important that we continue to fight the war on drugs not only at home but abroad as well. We must work to ensure that drugs and criminals do not reach our soil.

CONTACT OUR SENATORS, CONGRESS PERSON AND OUR PRESIDENT NOT TO HAVE THIS PASSED. KEEP IN MIND HOW MUCH MONEY IS SENT TO MEXICO BY ILLEGALS EVERY YEAR, KEEP IN MIND WE TRAIN , WE LOOSE OUR NATION…. FUEL FOR THOUGHT. USE THE MONEY TO BUILD OUR BORDER WALL SOONER THAN LATER.

In a few billion years, the Sun will fuse the last of its hydrogen into helium, turn into a red giant and expand to 250 times its current size. At first, the Sun’s loss of mass will loosen its gravitational pull on Earth, which will allow the planet to migrate to a wider orbit about 7.6 billion years from now.

This process has led some to speculate that the Earth might escape destruction – but survival now seems impossible…

And I, for one, am pissed.

My original plan called for a couple years of pure advocacy here in Loudoun County, followed by a statewide public education effort aimed at informing the citizens of Virginia about the substance of both American political and everyday culture – this ongoing for maybe five or so years. Beyond that, I envisioned a national effort to increase familiarity with the foundations and mores of “western” civilization, from the Magna Carta to the Mayflower Compact to “Wealth of Nations”: highlighting what we all know but no longer notice, which could take a decade or two of undoing the many years of really bad education in history that our nation has bequeathed to its upcoming generations. Next would be a few hundred thousand years of advocacy for the much more basic “human” values contributing to the endurance of our species: convincing people to have stronger families with more focus on having kids and gradually reverse the decadent liberal value system of the 1960s pop culture. Finally – and I’m not saying I would be around to witness this, but I’d hope in some small way those I know and love would benefit – I’d have hoped for eight or ten billion years of grassroots political activism to gradually reverse the problems wrought by television, and thereby convince my fellow Americans to eventually read more books and spend more time outdoors, hiking, doing their own landscaping, and generally things like picnicking, shooting guns evenings and weekends, and jarts.

But apparently it is not to be, as this lame-o planet of ours has so little self-sufficiency that in seven billion years we could all be at the mercy of the whims of the dying star we call our “sun.” Maybe if we had known this, we’d have been calling it our “lamp.” Because – WORD – lamps burn out, but “suns” supposedly give life to your planet.

If this so-called “life” the sun is giving us is suddenly going to be snuffed around 7,600,002,008 AD, I say please just pull the plug on it right now and don’t get our hopes up, ‘kay?

Turn it all dark so we can start looking for a terrestrial home with a little more backbone.

Crappy frickin’ planet we’ve ended up on, story of my life …

So, yes, I will be modifying the long-term plan. I’m thinking more emphasis on fundraising and paid workers rather than volunteers, since the “sunset” of our project might arrive earlier than we hoped and we will have to pay a price to speed up the process. The strategy will still be the same but these tactical changes are annoying.

Either Michelle Obama is an utter narcissist or a clueless ninny. If her husband’s campaign success is the first time she is proud of her country since becoming an adult, then what planet has she been living on? From the Democrat perspective Bill Clinton’s getting elected was akin to the second coming of Christ. The Berlin Wall’s coming down was a moment of pride for this American. The countless times we sent massive food and medical aid to whatever disaster spot one can think of were also a source of pride.

When those three firefighters put up the flag amidst the rubble at the World Trade Center, I was proud. Where was Michele? Each shuttle flight leaves me proud, as does the fact that the poor in our country have color TV’s, running water, AC and 40% of them own the house they live in. As the space program is seen as ‘waste’, according to the Democrat and the American poor are all hungry, despite their apparent obesity, it is not surprising she fails to note these achievements.

I am proud of the fact that despite the 100 plus cultures that people come from we are not Balkanized, which is why her husband is doing well, despite the race baiting of the Clinton’s and their lackeys. I am proud of the fact that we have the most number of business start ups in the world. I am proud that we can argue and fight likes cats and dogs over our politics and yet we don’t resort to gunfire in the streets.

Michele Obama has backpedaled mightily and stated that she is proud of the amount of people who are getting involved in politics for the first time. This is a bold faced lie that is Clintonesque in its boldness. This is what we have to look forward to, folks, I hope we as a nation come through all this in one piece.

Lois the Cat was the longest-tenured animal in our menagerie, and she predated me in fact because my wife got her before we even met.

Things were always a little rocky between Lois and I, because I am allergic to cats and Lois was one of those who could not take no for an answer. She was a love-and-purr machine: Regardless of how much an ogre you might be, Lois would unflinchingly approach seeking to be petted. Back in the days when we actually had company, Lois would inevitably be the hit of the party, throwing herself with abandon at anyone who might have an inkling to Pet The Cat.

She had to deal with some curveballs, such as being transformed from an indoor cat to an outdoor cat around the age of 12 in order to allow your humble narrator to continue to live in the house. But her disposition never changed; she adapted to life in the cat house and the backyard, and she remained a very sweet creature wanting nothing more than to be stroked by anyone in the vicinity. This included me – the decidedly non-cat lover – despite the fact that she surely had me figured out. She was not a stupid cat. So her indefatigable advances, her blatant flirtatiousness despite the wall I attempted to maintain between us, served as a reminder that she was, in an important sense, a better person than I.

My wife rescued Lois from a shelter (and a previously abusive owner), giving her what turned out to be a good life.

Reflecting puts the significance of the past in perspective – (and this is not just for pets obviously): Altogether we had Lois for over 13 years. That’s a serious slice of our life. We had a lot happen during that time – we each in the family accomplished things, we had our rough spots, and a lot changed. BOY did things ever change. Among the constants during that period, Lois was a key one. She was really a good natured cat, a blessing to us.

Something we should hope to see more of: 3Com has decided not to merge with the Chinese firm Huawei Technologies because of national security concerns.

“In this instance, it appears the CFIUS process has worked,” said Rep. Duncan Hunter of California, ranking Republican on the Armed Services Committee.

“The foreign acquisition of American defense contractors will continue to present significant problems and challenges. … We must weigh American security interests before potential profits.”

The little-known CFIUS, an in interagency committee charged with reviewing cross-national mergers for security risks and anti-trust violations, caused a political firestorm in 2006 when it signed off on a deal that would have given Dubai Ports World, a United Arab Emirates-based company, management contracts for six major U.S. ports.

As part of the long denouement to this, well, interesting political season, it is of some interest that the 3Com deal was part of the reason why Duncan Hunter refused to endorse Mitt Romney.